Two matches did take place on Thursday in front of full crowds as Liverpool beat Newcastle 3-1 and Chelsea were held 1-1 by Everton despite outbreaks at Liverpool and Chelsea.

Both clubs are among those still due to play over the weekend.

Chelsea were without Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Callum Hudson-Odoi as well as injured left-back Ben Chilwell due to positive tests.

“I will not get involved in this sport politics,” said Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel. “Other games get cancelled, ours didn’t so we have to do our best to win it.”

Liverpool shrugged off the loss Virgil van Dijk, Fabinho and Curtis Jones but the status of their trip to Tottenham on Sunday will depend on how the outbreak is contained in the coming days.

Another 10 matches have been postponed in the English Football League (EFL) as the authorities urged players to get vaccinated or their booster shot against the virus.

The EFL, which runs the second, third and fourth tiers, said 25 percent of players were still refusing to get the jab based on their data from November with just 59 percent double vaccinated.

According to The Times, the level of unvaccinated players is aggravating the crisis as they still have to isolate after coming into close contact with someone who has tested positive.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp reiterated his call for players to ignore “lies and misinformation” around the vaccine.

“I follow the advice of smart, educated people who know their field because they’ve dedicated their lives to it and have studied it,” the German said in his programme notes ahead of Thursday’s match.

“Ignore those who pretend to know. Ignore lies and misinformation. Listen to people who know best. If you do that, you end up wanting the vaccine and the booster.”